Numero Soixante Six
Registered User
- Aug 2, 2005
- 9
- 0
The thing I take the most from the 1991 Canada Cup is the fact that it might very well have been an even better hockey tournament than the 1987 Canada Cup, were it not for the changing hockey landscape and changed world.
If you add in a prime Lemieux, along with Roy, Bourque, Neely and Recchi you probably have a lineup that is even stronger than the 87 team.
Gretzky - Shanahan - Larmer
Lemieux - Robitaille - Recchi
Messier - Lindros - Neely
Hawerchuk - Sutter - Tocchet
Fleury
Bourque - MacInnis
Coffey - Stevens
Murphy - Smith
Desjardins - Tinordi
Roy
Ranford
Belfour
This lineup drops Corson, Courtnall and Graham. Keenan would have been loyal to Sutter though, so I left him there. But you still have no Sakic, Gilmour, Yzerman, Oates or even Francis. That's how deep that team is at centre.
As unbeatable as that team looks though; if the USSR had decided to send a real team of their best players it would have a monumental battle.
Although Krutov got fat during his one year in the NHL and would not be in any shape to play; Larionov and Makarov were still superstars but were just not selected due to politics. The same goes for Fetisov and Mogilny. And they also decided to hold Bure as well.
The team could have easily been
Larionov - Kamensky - Makarov
Fedorov - Mogilny - Bure
Zhamnov - Nemchinov - Khomutov
Semak - Lomakin - Khymlev
Semenov
Borchevsky / Prokohorov / Butsayev / Khristich / 17 year old Kovalev - would have been in the running to make the team
Fetisov - Kasatonov
Gusarov - Kravchuk
Malakhov - Mironov
Tatarinov
Zubov / Konstantinov / Zhitnik - would have been in the running to make the team
Shtalenkov
Trefilov
????
That would have been one heck of a hockey team and one hell of a matchup. It would have been a Soviet team with a blend of young and old superstars.
Its really too bad it never happened and one that could have given a Team Canada roster with 13 future hall of famers a run for its money.
If you add in a prime Lemieux, along with Roy, Bourque, Neely and Recchi you probably have a lineup that is even stronger than the 87 team.
Gretzky - Shanahan - Larmer
Lemieux - Robitaille - Recchi
Messier - Lindros - Neely
Hawerchuk - Sutter - Tocchet
Fleury
Bourque - MacInnis
Coffey - Stevens
Murphy - Smith
Desjardins - Tinordi
Roy
Ranford
Belfour
This lineup drops Corson, Courtnall and Graham. Keenan would have been loyal to Sutter though, so I left him there. But you still have no Sakic, Gilmour, Yzerman, Oates or even Francis. That's how deep that team is at centre.
As unbeatable as that team looks though; if the USSR had decided to send a real team of their best players it would have a monumental battle.
Although Krutov got fat during his one year in the NHL and would not be in any shape to play; Larionov and Makarov were still superstars but were just not selected due to politics. The same goes for Fetisov and Mogilny. And they also decided to hold Bure as well.
The team could have easily been
Larionov - Kamensky - Makarov
Fedorov - Mogilny - Bure
Zhamnov - Nemchinov - Khomutov
Semak - Lomakin - Khymlev
Semenov
Borchevsky / Prokohorov / Butsayev / Khristich / 17 year old Kovalev - would have been in the running to make the team
Fetisov - Kasatonov
Gusarov - Kravchuk
Malakhov - Mironov
Tatarinov
Zubov / Konstantinov / Zhitnik - would have been in the running to make the team
Shtalenkov
Trefilov
????
That would have been one heck of a hockey team and one hell of a matchup. It would have been a Soviet team with a blend of young and old superstars.
Its really too bad it never happened and one that could have given a Team Canada roster with 13 future hall of famers a run for its money.